It depends upon to whom you lose.

During my high school athletic career, I participated in multiple sports. Yet, there was one sport I was adamant about never doing, wrestling. I was the youngest of four brothers, two of whom wrestled and gave me plenty of reasons why I never would.

Yet, here I am, wrestling. Not with people, but with God. Genesis 32 gives insight as to why this happens when Jacob wrestled with God.

“The Hebrew word for “divine” in Genesis 32 is Elohim, symbolizing God’s presence in nature. Nature acts as a veil, concealing God from the world. Therefore, to struggle with Elohim is to perceive the divine presence beyond the superficial layer of nature, to challenge the ordinary flow of events, and to seek a connection with the manifestation of God that lies beyond the natural world.” (Rabbi Pinchas Polonsky)

God used this wrestling match to allow me to see behind what I could see. I was still making life about me and what I wanted. You’d think after 63 years on this planet, I would be over myself by now.

Guess not. And this current wrestling match only brought that to the surface. God wanted to draw me closer to Him, which meant I needed to learn something new about Him, which meant getting me out of the way.

How about you? Are you wrestling with God over something He’s been asking you to work through – personally or professionally?

Take it from one who hates wrestling. Ask the Spirit to give you insight into why you are struggling/wrestling with God; and then, let Him win. You just might learn something important about who your God is that will change your life both now and for eternity.